Canceled

by Shay Lavender, Tierra Finley (Illustrator), Karissa J. Grant (Editor)

Shay Lavender’s debut novel Canceled, follows ShaMaya Jackson as she starts her first professional job in the undergraduate admissions office at her alma mater, Oakwood University, outside of her hometown, Detroit. As the sole Black person on staff, she’s challenged when white students pursue legal action against the office claiming discrimination in the review process and being denied admission for less qualified Black students. After a video of ShaMaya declaring Black people’s rights to Oakwood’s campus in a dispute with white alumni at a football game goes viral—she gains fame overnight. Finding herself in the middle of a racial divide on campus and her office’s political agenda, ShaMaya is put into a position to choose between the demands of her job and sudden designation as a social justice warrior. Canceled is a story of a young Black woman trying to establish herself in a world where her intersections create conflict in the different spaces that she occupies.

236 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 5, 2022

Reviews

[Virginia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I couldn’t put this book down. It should be assigned reading for all college students and anyone interested in higher education and equity.

[Shaina Darden · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good and interesting read for a "non- reader" like me... it kept me engaged though I haven't read a novel since college... and good character development and back story.